Arizona Range Grasses
Their Description, Forage Value, and Grazing Management
Cooperative Extension,College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, The University of Arizona

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SANTA RITA THREEAWN
Aristida californica Thurber var. glabrata Vasey

Description

Growth habit: Small perennial bunchgrass with hard, round, wiry stems 1 to 11/2 feet tall.
Color: Green to gray-green almost year long.
Leaves: Short, those on the seedstalks from about 1/2 to 1 1/4 inches long; narrow, inrolled, not hairy.
Inflorescence: Slender, several lying close to and rather erect against the central stem. Each spikelet bears at its tip three slender spreading awns each about 3/4 inch long. The column connecting the awns to the seed scales breaks off at slight pressure when the seed is mature.
Other: When grazed, this grass is usually clipped off evenly, 1 or 2 inches from the ground. The sharp ends of the wiry stems feel like bristles on a stiff brush.
Season: Warm Season
Origin: Native

Figure 4. Santa Rita threeawn (Aristida californica var. glabrata), plant and spikelet. View Larger Image Click Here

Occurrence

Dry, sandy, or gravelly bajada slopes in Maricopa, Mohave, Santa Cruz, Pinal, Pima, and Yuma counties. It is most typical of desert shrub and grassland ranges from 2,000 to 5,000 feet.

Forage Value

Although the stems are hard and wiry and the plant is not very leafy, it is grazed readily, particularly late in the season after most of the other grasses are dry.

Grazing Management

Santa Rita threeawn withstands rather heavy, long-continued grazing better than most of the grama grasses that commonly grow with it. Ranges with an abundance of this grass should be grazed during the spring and fall drought periods to take advantage of the seasonal green feed. The plants should not be grazed too closely. Some seed stalks should be left at the end of the grazing season.

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Document located http://cals.arizona.edu/pubs/natresources/az1272/
published 2002
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